Using Optware

Preware has several of the most popular and useful Optware packages available in the Optware feed. If the Optware package you're looking for is available in Preware, just use Preware to install it and ignore the following instructions.

"Raw" Optware packages vs. mobi.optware.* packages

As mentioned previously, Preware's Optware feed includes a selection of popular packages. These package file names follow the pattern mobi.optware.*. All packages installed by Preware (including the mobi.optware.* packages) are managed in the command line using the ipkg command (with a mandatory -o /media/cryptofs/apps option).

There are over one thousand nslu2-linux.org raw Optware packages that are not available in Preware's Optware feed. We will refer to these as raw Optware packages (or "the nslu2-linux.org Optware packages"). One other important distinction is that raw Optware packages are managed using the ipkg-opt command.

Let's re-state the advice that if there is a mobi.optware.* version of the package, you should use Preware to install it.

Installing ipkg-out for access to raw Optware packages

!!!!This is for advanced command line users only!!!!

Use Preware to install both the "Optware Bootstrap" and the "Optware Advanced Linux Command Line Installer"

These instructions also assume you have command-line access to your Pre/Touchpad. Instructions for getting this access can be found at Access via SSH and Access via Novaterm.

Managing "raw" nslu2-linux.org Optware packages

These commands should be typed from a shell. Make sure you use ipkg-opt and not ipkg.

Download/Update the package list from nslu2-linux.org.

ipkg-opt update

Upgrade [-test will show what would be done] all installed packages

ipkg-opt [-test] upgrade

To get a list of all packages

ipkg-opt list

To get a list of installed packages

ipkg-opt list_installed

Here is an example of the command used to install the Python 2.5 interpreter